Namibia rolled out the First Ladies First movement on Saturday evening, aiming to raise awareness and curb prevalent cases of gender-based violence on the African continent.
Artist and Founder of First Ladies First movement, Taylor Jaye said that that the rollout of the movement in Namibia follows its launch in South Africa in August this year.
“I wanted a movement and a name that represents women, their power and strength, hence the name First Ladies First,” she said. “I then also decided to roll it out to my home country, Namibia given the increasing cases of gender-based violence.”
A recent report landscaping gender-based violence by Namibian think tank Institute of Public Policy Research shows that 32 percent of women in Namibia aged 15 to 49 have experienced some form of physical violence in relationships or marriages.
According to Jaye, the flagship initiative is also dedicated to celebrating African women and men fighting against gender-based violence to break free and stay free from all violence plaguing our society.
In the interim, the First Ladies First movement targets to foster collaborations across the continent to further initiate open discussions to bring awareness to and build a path to ending gender-based violence, she said. Enditem
